Salorin
Salorin is a planet in the Estaali system, which is approximately 21 light-years away from the Lukara system. It is the first colony world settled by pioneers from the Ashkathi Union, and indeed, the word salorin means "frontier" in Gaale. Geography Salorin is roughly three quarters of the size of Larine. Covered in 90% water, its largest continent, known to the Ashkathi as the Bate Ridge, is composed primarily of flat, rocky steppelands. The northern coast, however, contains the island Nanate, and its three crater lakes, known locally as the Three Peers. Climate Unlike Larine, Salorin's climate is fairly mild all year round, never dropping below 50 degrees F / 10 degrees C. Above the land, it occasionally rains, but overall the climate of Salorin is actually fairly dry. Over the water, however, torrential downpours feed the expanding oceans. Biology The ocean, unlike that of Larine, seems to be mostly barren, with the exception of the area surrounding Nanate, upon which grows a bizarre plant-like organism. It is unknown why there are so few examples of native macroscopic life, but one hypothesis is that Salorin is in a biological growth period, similar to Earth's Cambrian Period. Plant life Salorin's plant life mostly consists of a weedy green stalk, roughly 4 inches high, that the Ashkathi have taken to calling kansaluuta, "one who beckons the sky", given that during periods of drought the plant wiggles and opens its leaves to absorb moisture in the air. The kansaluuta grow in thick groves across Nanate, and some have even been spotted on the main continent. There is very little macroscopic plant life in the ocean; what foliage that has been discovered is microscopic. Animal life The only macroscopic animal life that has been discovered on Salorin is a worm-like swimming animal that the Ashkathi call kute. A kute never grows longer than an inch, and they seem to eat sediment on the seabed. Strangely, these animals are only found in the area around Nanate. Upon closer inspection, the water across the planet was found to be teeming with micro-organisms, and the kute was instead feeding on microbes that attached themselves to bits of sediment. It is hypothesized that given a few million years, Salorin would have developed widespread macroscopic life. Kull were accidentally introduced to one of Salorin's crater lakes, the northernmost. Because of this, the kute population in that lake has been driven nearly to extinction as kull began to eat them. Measures to preserve the kute population in this lake have gone underway, and ever since this, importing or exporting non-native species to Ashkathi worlds has been banned (except for torra). Demographics The main colony city on Salorin is the research base called Point Ingenuity. Since the original landing, however, about 30 villages have sprouted in the areas around Point Ingenuity and bordering the island of Nanate, as well as within the Three Peers lakes. Satellites Salorin's sole moon is a tiny, asteroid-like satellite, Ganiki. It orbits Salorin every 40 days. Category:Ashkathi Union Category:Planets Category:Ashkathi Planets